Search form

STEPHEN HAWKING CENTRE AT PERIMETER INSTITUTE HONOURED

May 18, 2012

The Ontario Association of Architects (OAA) has selected the Stephen Hawking Centre at Perimeter Institute (SHC) for a major honour. Designed by Teeple Architects, the SHC is one of 15 structures from around the world that received a design excellence designation at the OAA's 2012 Awards ceremony, held on May 11.

The SHC, which opened last September, provides research and collaboration space for up to 150 researchers, gives a permanent home to the Institute's PSI Masters Program (formerly located off-site), and makes the Black Hole Bistro the building's welcoming heart, as envisioned by Perimeter's Director, Neil Turok. The SHC is more than a necessary space for Perimeter's growing community: it's an unusual, thoughtful, and beautiful research facility. Architects Stephen Teeple and Bernard Jin commented, "For us, the Hawking Centre was the project of a lifetime. We wanted to create a physical space that could not just reflect the beauty and complexity of the research done at Perimeter – but enhance and inspire it. It is a thrill to experience the completed centre – it feels as if the passion and science of the researchers is expressed in the form and light, the space and the openness. This facility will always be a source of great pride, inspiration, and accomplishment for our office." "The Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics is a distinguished research centre. It deserves a building like the Stephen Hawking Centre, which supports, facilitates, and celebrates its scientific achievements," says Sheena Sharp, President of the Ontario Association of Architects. "The Stephen Hawking Centre achieves design excellence by OAA standards because it reflects the Perimeter Institute's function and contributes to the success of those who use it."

Further Exploration

About Perimeter Institute

Perimeter Institute is the world’s largest research hub devoted to theoretical physics. The independent Institute was founded in 1999 to foster breakthroughs in the fundamental understanding of our universe, from the smallest particles to the entire cosmos. Research at Perimeter is motivated by the understanding that fundamental science advances human knowledge and catalyzes innovation, and that today’s theoretical physics is tomorrow’s technology. Located in the Region of Waterloo, the not-for-profit Institute is a unique public-private endeavour, including the Governments of Ontario and Canada, that enables cutting-edge research, trains the next generation of scientific pioneers, and shares the power of physics through award-winning educational outreach and public engagement.